Oi

CODE: NICE-24L-OI19

Work:

1) Supporting for harvesting and shipping during the peak of the Japanese star anise (shikimi) harvest season. 2) Supporting for harvesting and shipping of sudachi (Japanese citrus fruit) at the peak of harvest season. 3) Supporting for activities such as writing English guides in various places in the town for foreign pilgrims. 4) Cleaning of vacant houses, support for carrying out furniture, pruning of cedar cypress branches in abandoned mountain forests, picking up plastic rubbish from the sea and river, and utilisation of vacant houses. 5) Maintenance of Asagimadara flying sites, maintenance of firefly flying sites, etc.

Accomodation and food

Home staying at local farmhouses. All meals will be cooked by volunteers by turns. Sleeping bag is NOT necessary.

Location and leisure

Oi-cho, Anan city, Tokushima pref. Visiting Kakurin-ji temple.

Project hosted by

This project is actively working for SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDGs 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), organized together with the local group since 2019. This village has been welcoming ohenro (pilgrims) who visit 88 temples in Shikoku since long time ago.
The pilgrims walk through this village before visiting Kakurin-ji temple; the 20th temple out of 88 temples of the Shikoku Ohenro Pilgrimage. However, there are problems which should be solved such as aging and depopulation of the community these days, and locals haven't been able to find solutions for those problems. On the other hand, since more and more people from overseas visit for the Shikoku Ohenro Pilgrimage locals are trying to find new ways for omotenashi (hospitality). Volunteers who have been working on the project have come up with ideas for the reuse of vacant and abandoned land. Local host Oi have finally decided that they can freely renovate and modify the vacant houses. Moreover, the site is in a good location, with mountains, a river and fields. It is up to the volunteers from now on to decide how to develop the project. The aim is for the volunteer members to clean up the abandoned houses and village landscape and transform it into a village that people will want to visit to take photos, as it used to be a village where people came and went since ancient times.

Directions to meeting point

Additional comments

Finding ways for sustainability of a depopulated village, Pass down the osettai culture to the next generation, Helping senior citizens to host foreigners